Only time I felt "disappointed" with a character that I can remember was in ep 19 when Kensuke calls Shinji and bitches about not being an eva pilot. I remember thinking "really dude...stfu." Bad friend moment.

At number one is basically Shinji in EoE, because he basically stood there and did nothing at all, even unit 01 had to do something for him when he was in the cage.Number two is Shinji in 2.22, when he saw unit 03 approching and he didn't do anything, i mean he was so selfish, he ejected Rei himself from unit 00 in the end of 1.11, why didn't he tought of that during that fight?!Number three is Asuka in NGE overall, she tought that she knew everything, she thought that she was the best of the best (and in some way she was), but when she saw that she wasn't as strong as she tought she was, she was/is naive during the hole saga and altought she has "grown up" a little in 3.33 she still is a little cocky.

mammaluser wrote:Number two is Shinji in 2.22, when he saw unit 03 approching and he didn't do anything, i mean he was so selfish, he ejected Rei himself from unit 00 in the end of 1.11, why didn't he tought of that during that fight?!

The Angel was holding the plug in. Ejecting it wasn't possible; the bridge crew tried it.

The Lance is still available in NERV's basement (didn't Misato give Shinji the nickel tour in 1.11 just prior to Op Yashima?). Maybe use it to temporarily incapacitate Unit-03 just long enough to rescue Asuka. Then use it again to permanently incapacitate Bardiel. Return it to it's storage case once the angel stops moving.

I agree it's not quite as flashy as catching a falling angel from orbit, but at least it would've been more of a variation from the original battle that played out with Touji.

I would like to add (and I shudder saying this since she's one of my faves) Misato. Specifically, that very last moment during episode 24. Retroactively speaking, this is the very last actively "real" moments in NGE before everything gets all ethereal, surreal, space, and hallucinatory. Thus, both Shinji and the audience need her to say something meaningful, comforting or at least insightful. This last desperate thread of hope is ripped apart when Misato tells Shinji that he [Kaworu] chose to die for a false hope.

I feel like this, in that moment, was the wrong thing for Misato to tell Shinji. Also, if she was so concerned about Kaworu's unearthly nature, then why did she let Shinji sleep at his house (which of course begs the question of why wasn't she keeping a better eye on him?)

I just feel like Misato became increasingly detached during the Descent Arc, but she probably should have had Shinji with her as much as possible after the reveal at the end of episode 23. I mean really, after Ritusko's breakdown, did Shinji and Misato just casually walk out (that car ride home must've been awkward)?

FROM EVANGELION:"Acts of Man are greater than acts of God!"

"I'm saying that I love you."

NOT FROM EVANGELION: "You are excrement. You can change yourself into gold."

Misato, not unlike Ritsuko, ended up "repeating the sins of the parent" despite concerned efforts not to. Against severe adversity, she discovered how poorly suited to parenthood she was, and escaped from her emotional obligations into work -- much as her father did. EoE even punctuates this transformation by having Misato's final moments precisely echo Dr. Katsuragi's.

SawItAtAge10 wrote:I would like to add (and I shudder saying this since she's one of my faves) Misato...

Well, she's certainly not one of my faves, but I would like to nominate her for a (dis)honorable mention. Specifically, I refer to her absolute failure to immediately notify Shinji when Touji was drafted to be the Fourth Child.

If you go back several episodes and take into account her petty criticism of Shinji in the aftermath of his non-berserker-mode victory against Shamshel (which also happened to provide NERV with its first and only intact S^2 engine sample, thank you very much), her silence on the matter of Mr. Suzuhara is a superlative example of hypocrisy and/or weakness. Take your pick.

I mean, here she is trying to pull rank on Shinji and make him feel like crap for not following orders. How the hell do you legitimately expect a fourteen year old kid to understand the chain of command after maybe a couple weeks of training? You guys threw Shinji out there against both the third and fourth angels with a negligible amount of preparation, zero backup, and virtually no strategy. And yet, he just went two for two. Shut up and take the damn win! I only wish that, by the end of episode four, Shinji had followed up his decision to rejoin NERV by graciously accepting their original offer of living by himself in his own apartment! Maybe it would've been easier for Shinji to respect Misato as a superior officer if he didn't have a front row seat to every single one of her drunken binges! But I digress!

Okay, let's all calm down for a moment. I guess, according to Misato, it would appear that Shinji is supposed to act with the utmost militaristic professionalism at all times, but, regardless of how many angels he defeats/# of times he saves NERV's ass, he should still be treated on a need to know basis. As it turns out, the identity of another pilot who might very well be putting their life on the line next to him in battle is info that requires a level of security clearance he just simply doesn't deserve.

Back when Misato decided to get all high and mighty with Shinji (because, well, let's face it, he made her look bad), the kid was still just a rookie, hoping he could remember the location of NERV's bathrooms. I would consider that a mitigating factor and let the kid off the hook. By about the middle of the series, however, as soon as Misato learns of Touji's newfound pilot candidate status, this grizzled veteran with all the experience in the world, suddenly falls victim to a severe case of selective mutism. So then, what the hell is her excuse?

I find myself chronically peeved at all of the characters in this satanic vehicle for constantly failing to do and say all of the things that I, as an upstanding white bread Christian of impeccable moral character and virtue, would unflinchingly manage to do in perfectly equivalent circumstances. May this cast of sick, sinful pagans burn in the fires of damnation for all eternity.

Ritsuko for not giving a single fuck about pilot's wellbeing throughout the course of the series. She was the only adult (besides Gendo obviously) who didn't have some emotional connection to the pilots. She was the only one who didn't make any effort to reach out to them in times of trouble.

Misato for her behavior in Episode 23. Her overture to Shinji after Rei's death was worse than her kissing Shinji in EOE. She was only thinking about herself.

Iuvenal wrote:Kaji was pretty awesome, but that's not why he died. I've always figured his requisite gaping character flaw was Fox Mulder syndrome, and that that's what killed him. I do agree that "you're late" is a frustrating thing to watch, however.

I think you guys are really letting Kaji off the hook here for some reason. Kaji deserves a lot shame because he didn't do ANYTHING to stop his death, well knowing that it would destroy Asuka, who he knew was an emotionally scarred young child afraid of abandonment, and it would destroy Misato, his lover. His devil may care attitude was selfish. At the end of the day, he couldn't bring himself to take responsibility, which directly impacted everyone around him in a detrimental way. In fact you could say Kaji did one of the most egregious things in the show by bringing Gendo the Adam embryo, which was basically Gendo's key to Instrumentality. All that was facilitated by Kaji. He endangered Asuka, Shinji, Misato, and the countless of other people on board Over the Rainbow by having Adam with him while an Angel was looking for it, forcing Shinji and Asuka to fight while he took the opportunity to run away. Also, he endangered Misato's life in Episode 7 by facilitating "the project" that would lead to Jet Alone exploding.

Rest In Peace ~ 1978 - 2017"I'd consider myself a realist, alright? but in philosophical terms I'm what's called a pessimist. It means I'm bad at parties." - Rust Cohle"Think of how stupid the average person is, and realize that half of 'em are stupider than that." - George Carlin"The internet: It's like a training camp for never amounting to anything." - Oglaf"I think internet message boards and the like are dangerous." - Anno

The failure of anyone to tell Shinji that Touji was the fourth child stands out for me; and the failure of Gendou to even attempt to explain to Shinji that fighting Bardiel was actually the best option to try to save the pilot. That whole sorry mess just shows up incompetence at every level.

"Being human, having your health; that's what's important."(from: Magical Shopping Arcade Abenobashi )"As long as we're all living, and as long as we're all having fun, that should do it, right?"(from: The Eccentric Family )Avatar: Sad, sad Shinji... (details); Past avatars.Afterwards... my post-Q Evangelion fanfic (discussion)

pwhodges wrote:The failure of anyone to tell Shinji that Touji was the fourth child stands out for me; and the failure of Gendou to even attempt to explain to Shinji that fighting Bardiel was actually the best option to try to save the pilot. That whole sorry mess just shows up incompetence at every level.

Episode 18 has so many problems, it might just be simplest to blame it all on imperfections in the script.

"Well, there are certain kinds of drama that I need to have happen for the sake of the ongoing narrative, but I don't really have enough time to make it all logistically work out, so we'll just have to settle as we often must do in the world of television."